Saturday, December 29, 2007
Huckabee on Illegal Pakistanis
PELLA, Iowa -- Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said Friday there are more Pakistanis in the U.S. illegally than any other nationality except those from Latin America.
He told his audience at a campaign event here that 660 Pakistanis have come into the country illegally because of insecure borders.
Pressed by reporters where he got that figure, Huckabee said: "Those are numbers that I got today from a briefing and I believe they are CIA and or immigration numbers." Later, in a conference call with reporters, he identified the figure coming from the Homeland Security Department.
"I am making the observation that we have more Pakistani illegals coming across our border than all other nationalities except those immediately south of the border," he said, repeating the assertion he made to his audience earlier. "And in light of what is happening in Pakistan it ought to give us pause as to why are so many illegals coming across these borders."
THE SPIN:
Huckabee has vaulted to the front tier of the Republican field with his tough-on-immigration stance. The issue resonates with voters in practically every state, including first-to-vote Iowa. He has proposed sealing the Mexican border, hiring more agents to patrol it and to make illegal immigrants go home and apply for legal status. He's backed by the founder of the tough anti-immigrant group Minuteman Project.
THE FACTS:
Homeland Security officials say there are more people in the U.S. illegally from the Caribbean, China and Canada than from Pakistan. Officials deported 435 Pakistanis in the 2007 fiscal year, which ran from Oct. 1, 2006 to Sept. 30, 2007, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement statistics. During this time, 766 people from China were deported, as were 521 from the Philippines.
In a phone call Friday with reporters, Huckabee said he was referring to the number of people who are caught entering the country illegally, and he pointed to Homeland Security statistics and a 2006 Denver Post article. He also said more Pakistanis were caught illegally trying to enter the U.S. than people from Canada and China.
Homeland Security does not publicize the number of people from each country who are caught trying to enter illegally or are turned away at legal border crossings, said Customs and Border Protection spokesman Bill Anthony. But without providing specific details _ because they are considered sensitive for law enforcement _ Anthony said Pakistanis do not top the list after Latin American countries.
In fiscal 2007, about 600 Pakistanis were turned away at the border or arrested in between entry points.
PELLA, Iowa -- Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said Friday there are more Pakistanis in the U.S. illegally than any other nationality except those from Latin America.
He told his audience at a campaign event here that 660 Pakistanis have come into the country illegally because of insecure borders.
Pressed by reporters where he got that figure, Huckabee said: "Those are numbers that I got today from a briefing and I believe they are CIA and or immigration numbers." Later, in a conference call with reporters, he identified the figure coming from the Homeland Security Department.
"I am making the observation that we have more Pakistani illegals coming across our border than all other nationalities except those immediately south of the border," he said, repeating the assertion he made to his audience earlier. "And in light of what is happening in Pakistan it ought to give us pause as to why are so many illegals coming across these borders."
THE SPIN:
Huckabee has vaulted to the front tier of the Republican field with his tough-on-immigration stance. The issue resonates with voters in practically every state, including first-to-vote Iowa. He has proposed sealing the Mexican border, hiring more agents to patrol it and to make illegal immigrants go home and apply for legal status. He's backed by the founder of the tough anti-immigrant group Minuteman Project.
THE FACTS:
Homeland Security officials say there are more people in the U.S. illegally from the Caribbean, China and Canada than from Pakistan. Officials deported 435 Pakistanis in the 2007 fiscal year, which ran from Oct. 1, 2006 to Sept. 30, 2007, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement statistics. During this time, 766 people from China were deported, as were 521 from the Philippines.
In a phone call Friday with reporters, Huckabee said he was referring to the number of people who are caught entering the country illegally, and he pointed to Homeland Security statistics and a 2006 Denver Post article. He also said more Pakistanis were caught illegally trying to enter the U.S. than people from Canada and China.
Homeland Security does not publicize the number of people from each country who are caught trying to enter illegally or are turned away at legal border crossings, said Customs and Border Protection spokesman Bill Anthony. But without providing specific details _ because they are considered sensitive for law enforcement _ Anthony said Pakistanis do not top the list after Latin American countries.
In fiscal 2007, about 600 Pakistanis were turned away at the border or arrested in between entry points.
